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Original poster

Being replaced by AI?

31 replies

Ohreallyreally · 18/02/2023 20:21

Following the Guardians multiple articles about AI wiping out the middle class professional roles in the relatively near future, is anyone else considering to upskill themselves to become more useful for a AI filled world?

Both my and my husbands roles (data analyst and hgv driver) were specifically mentioned so it spiked my anxious side a little 😬

I know it's a ridiculous fear, but is anyone expecting to be replaced by a computer in the next 15 years?

Are you doing anything to future proof your employment?

OP posts:
topcat2014 · 18/02/2023 20:35

I'm a chief finance officer, so wondering the same. Most of my department work is taking info from one computer program and putting it into another ..

RudsyFarmer · 18/02/2023 20:38

I’m not sure I have the kind of job that could be replaced by an algorithm however I’m certainly conscious of this when guiding my kids towards future careers.

I read the other day about AI replacing coders. That’s going to cause a lot of upset as I know those people are often pretty introverted and well paid.

Original poster
Ohreallyreally · 18/02/2023 20:38

topcat2014 · 18/02/2023 20:35

I'm a chief finance officer, so wondering the same. Most of my department work is taking info from one computer program and putting it into another ..

My other area of expertise is project management, which can also be replaced by a chunky CMR system too.

I just don't really see which office based careers couldn't be replaced by AI really so there isn't much to retrain to I suppose.

OP posts:
user1471548941 · 18/02/2023 20:39

I am a project manager and over the last 18 months I have been building a specialism in AI…. So my role is to implement the AI! Feels very future proof to me, but you’d be surprised that it doesn’t instantly replace roles- often need a human to “check and approve” before proceeding with actions- I would think it more likely to see a slow decrease in team sizes etc and an increase in roles in tech/implementation. I think those in the areas impacted who are smart and invested will have the opportunity to jump ship into the implementation teams. Process/product/system knowledge is invaluable for the AI build out!

IDontWantToBeAPie · 18/02/2023 20:42

I doubt AI can be a travel journalist - they'd find it difficult to go away and rate things from a human perspective.

theemmadilemma · 18/02/2023 20:44

I was reading this yesterday. As a coder, I'd be concerned.

(Im in software industry but it a coder myself.)

Spendonsend · 18/02/2023 20:45

I am a school administrator. Its very jack of all trades. I do things like unblock a toilet, first aid, type a letter, organise a check on fire extinguishers, order sand for the sand pit- endless bits and bobs. I think they could get lots of different types of AI to do bits of my job but I think the several different AI would cost more than me as I dont earn much.

Original poster
Ohreallyreally · 18/02/2023 20:46

user1471548941 · 18/02/2023 20:39

I am a project manager and over the last 18 months I have been building a specialism in AI…. So my role is to implement the AI! Feels very future proof to me, but you’d be surprised that it doesn’t instantly replace roles- often need a human to “check and approve” before proceeding with actions- I would think it more likely to see a slow decrease in team sizes etc and an increase in roles in tech/implementation. I think those in the areas impacted who are smart and invested will have the opportunity to jump ship into the implementation teams. Process/product/system knowledge is invaluable for the AI build out!

Those check and approve jobs would very likely be minimum wage surely or not far off?

How have you been building specialism in AI? My organisation is a forerunner for AI R&D so I could very easily slide into something like that.

OP posts:
Starseeed · 18/02/2023 20:50

I don’t know if I’m being naive but I don’t see how my job could be completely replaced - sort of auditor, assessing complicated customer journeys through financial product lifecycles. A computer can assess things to a certain extent and I expect things like data analytics and machine learning might replace some aspects, but I think we’re quite far off a computer replicating the human element of being able to tell a customer has got a good end to end outcome. I think having quicker more accurate data will just help us be more precise about what things to audit.

I used to have a boss who would always say ‘risk management is an art, not a science’. Got to stick to the arts to compete against the bots I think! Interested if anyone has other views.

Pebbles16 · 18/02/2023 20:50

I am in a creative industry and it's terrifying that even really simple programmes like DALL.E and Chat GPT will replace some colleagues' skills in the near future. However, for the moment, client personal relationships cannot be replaced ... YET.

RoseslnTheHospital · 18/02/2023 20:54

I very much doubt that AI will be able to replace software programmers in five years. The field of AI is full of big claims and not so big delivery. Some recent high profile issues should put a dent in the confidence in AI, such as Google Bard giving a wrong answer, the Tesla self driving video being (alleged) to be faked and so on. It's all interesting tech and has lots of useful applications but it's not going to be something that wipes out huge swathes of job roles in the short or medium term.

stargirl1701 · 18/02/2023 21:00

No. I'm a primary school teacher. We've just had a global experiment with technology and teaching. It was a failure. The vast majority of children do better in school with a teacher.

validnumber · 18/02/2023 21:13

RudsyFarmer · 18/02/2023 20:38

I’m not sure I have the kind of job that could be replaced by an algorithm however I’m certainly conscious of this when guiding my kids towards future careers.

I read the other day about AI replacing coders. That’s going to cause a lot of upset as I know those people are often pretty introverted and well paid.

What sort of careers are you encouraging your kids to do?

RudsyFarmer · 18/02/2023 21:17

validnumber · 18/02/2023 21:13

What sort of careers are you encouraging your kids to do?

Show quote history

I have no idea yet as they’re still primary age. It’s going to be on my mind though when we get there.

Smoothlines · 18/02/2023 21:24

I do a job that many people think is already being done by AI, and they are surprised to learn that no, real people do it. We do use quite a lot of AI, but it still isn’t good enough. It’s a very basic tool but needs considerable educated, nuanced, thoughtful human work to transform it into the end result. Eventually, though, I expect AI to do a good enough job that some people are happy to pay cheap prices for.

Original poster
Ohreallyreally · 18/02/2023 21:38

RudsyFarmer · 18/02/2023 21:17

I have no idea yet as they’re still primary age. It’s going to be on my mind though when we get there.

Show quote history

Funnily enough I was saying I'm going to push my (1 year old) into IT, but seems like they'll even be replaced by AI!

OP posts:
EnglishRain · 18/02/2023 22:27

There is plenty that won't be replaced by AI. I'm surprised at the CFO on this thread saying most of the department is copying from one system to another. That stuff can be automated and I wouldn't expect anyone except NMW level staff to be doing that kind of thing. It's massive waste of most people's time. Automation has been around for years now.

I work in a senior finance role, but my role is future strategy/direction including contract negotiations and also a lot of stakeholder management both internally and externally. I think a lot of senior roles in a lot of industries are similar, require so much people management that AI wouldn't tick the boxes.

ProperC00king · 24/02/2023 17:40

My partner & I have both had jobs replaced by new technology in the past

We both have transferable skills
We have both learnt new skills
We have worked in a variety of industries & job roles

New jobs will be created

You cannot always predict what will happen in the future

wheresmymojo · 20/08/2023 21:36

EnglishRain · 18/02/2023 22:27

There is plenty that won't be replaced by AI. I'm surprised at the CFO on this thread saying most of the department is copying from one system to another. That stuff can be automated and I wouldn't expect anyone except NMW level staff to be doing that kind of thing. It's massive waste of most people's time. Automation has been around for years now.

I work in a senior finance role, but my role is future strategy/direction including contract negotiations and also a lot of stakeholder management both internally and externally. I think a lot of senior roles in a lot of industries are similar, require so much people management that AI wouldn't tick the boxes.

Ultimately all financial reporting is just calculations, rules and moving data around though?

The only element that isn't is writing the narratives and AI could easily do the initial analysis.

lljkk · 20/08/2023 21:42

ZOMBIE ZOMBIE ZOMBIE ZOMBIE

I had a load of editing suggestions (supposedly from another professional) on a document I wrote recently that... I'm convinced the comments were written by an AI. They were so damn ignorant (about what my document was for) & pointless. I was amused.

DS is studying computing & has a lot of comments why AI is NOT going to replace coders. The coding that AI produces is poorly documented too hard to maintain, maintenance is actually the most expensive element of code etc.

wheresmymojo · 20/08/2023 22:10

I know it's a bit of a zombie thread but it's one of the most recent and still a relevant conversation?

wheresmymojo · 20/08/2023 22:15

It's hard now.

It won't be in 12-18 months.

I've pretty much saved myself hours and hours and hours every single week with AI since I started to use it (not coding).

I reckon I could end up reducing the time I need to do my job by 50% (and we're a company that's growing very quickly so it won't result in a reduction of my role, particularly as I'm the only specialist in my area).

I can see a day quite soon where my role won't be needed though and I thought it would be safe for a while yet...

Highly paid role in the City

Work is related to human behaviour and empathy is essential (ChatGPT is better at it than 80% of the humans I teach including the empathy).

It won't replace roles for a while but I can see it reducing need for roles significantly in many, many areas.

wheresmymojo · 20/08/2023 22:21

I'm also going to suggest that your DS who is only just studying computing perhaps may not be as familiar with it as the many experts who have decades of actual experience on the new large language models.

I think he needs to reassess his level of relative expertise and competence.

Did you know that GPT4 outperforms humans on many post-grad exams now?

I don't mean ones just testing factual memory recall. I mean ones that post-grads find challenging and that require critical thinking and answering complex scenarios with lots of nuance.

It passes both The Bar exam and LSATs (US post-grad exams to enter the legal profession seen as pretty challenging by most graduates) with scores that are better than 90% of those grads.

RantyAnty · 20/08/2023 22:29

wheresmymojo · 20/08/2023 22:21

I'm also going to suggest that your DS who is only just studying computing perhaps may not be as familiar with it as the many experts who have decades of actual experience on the new large language models.

I think he needs to reassess his level of relative expertise and competence.

Did you know that GPT4 outperforms humans on many post-grad exams now?

I don't mean ones just testing factual memory recall. I mean ones that post-grads find challenging and that require critical thinking and answering complex scenarios with lots of nuance.

It passes both The Bar exam and LSATs (US post-grad exams to enter the legal profession seen as pretty challenging by most graduates) with scores that are better than 90% of those grads.

Lol this is a complete myth.

The hype is there to get investors.